‘IT, BT firms also have onus to provide security to women’

The onus of providing safety and security to working women on night shifts not only rests with the state government, but also with the IT and BT companies, Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge said today.

NASSCOM has also said that the recommendation denies women an opportunity to work.(Reuters)

The onus of providing safety and security to working women on night shifts not only rests with the state government, but also with the IT and BT companies, Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge said today. He was replying to NASSCOM’s reaction to the recommendation of the Joint House Committee of the state legislature that IT and BT companies should not assign night duties to working women to ensure their safety and security. NASSCOM has also said that the recommendation denies women an opportunity to work.

The recommendation was made after panel members interacted with employees and management teams of some IT and BT firms, including Infosys and Biocon, during their visit to the companies last year.

Kharge said sometimes the private sector goes overboard and hold parties beyond 11 PM and if the government tries to restrict it, it is termed as a regressive step and eventually government gets blamed badly.

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“Sometimes the private sector goes overboard and want to party till 1 AM. We do have ample security to provide but whenever things go bad, we get blamed badly.”
“If we say till 11 PM,they say it is a regressive step… everybody likes to be arm-chair thinkers,” he told PTI.

However, the ultimate decision lies with the government whether to implement the recommendation and as of now, IT and BT companies should not press the panic button, Kharge said.

“The IT and BT companies, as of now, should not be concerned over house panel’s recommendation of avoiding putting women on night duties. The recommendation might be ignored by the government.It is mere recommendation,”he added.

Panel head N A Haris also said a ban on women working in night shifts was not being considered, but “prevention is better than cure.”

The committee also recommended pink police patrol system on the lines of that in Kerala to prevent sexual assault. It also recommended that Labour and Women and Child Development departments frequently inspect garment factories and ensure steps are taken to provide security to women employees.